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Despite slump, Brown clutch for Virginia Tech again in win over Wake

Hokies guard took ball to rim when Deacons trapped Erick Green

David Teel
David Teel

January 20, 2013

BLACKSBURG — Miserable doesn't begin to describe Robert Brown's shooting funk. After such an encouraging start this season, Virginia's Tech's starting wing guard has missed 62 of his last 79 attempts from the field.

Brown's numbers from beyond the 3-point arc are worse. He's missed 27 of his last 29.

But for the second time in as many games, Brown emerged when needed most Saturday, scoring the decisive points as the Hokies edged Wake Forest 66-65 at Cassell Coliseum.

The young man may be frustrated, even confused, but clearly he isn't shy.

"I'll tell you how his mindset's been," Tech coach James Johnson said. "He made two big shots in overtime down at Georgia Tech, and he drove the ball to the hole and made a big layup today. I'd say Robert Brown has short-term memory."

Brown's mid-range jumper and layup a week ago at Georgia Tech helped the Hokies prevail 70-65 and snap a four-game losing streak. His floater in the lane Saturday gave Virginia Tech a 66-65 lead with 12.3 seconds remaining.

As you might expect given his struggles, Brown was neither Plan A nor B after Travis McKie's 3-pointer gave the Deacons a 65-64 lead with 30.1 seconds left. But when Wake trapped Erick Green off a screen and shaded other defenders toward Jarell Eddie, Brown found himself with the ball.

He made his shot despite Devin Thomas' foul, missed the free throw and then watched as C.J. Harris and Tyler Cavanaugh missed point-blank shots for Wake in the final seconds.

"Coach always just tells me to be aggressive whether I'm hitting or not," Brown said. "I took the first good shot we had (on the final possession)."

Brown was 1-of-10 before his final shot, much like at Georgia Tech, where he was 1-for-9 before his two overtime makes.

"I try not to get too high on one single play or a couple plays," Brown said of Georgia Tech, "but those did help me out and gave me confidence to make a play tonight."

Wake Forest athletic director Ron Wellman, a member of the NCAA tournament selection committee, attended Saturday, but neither his Deacons (9-8, 2-3 ACC) nor the Hokies (11-6, 2-2) will be on the panel's radar come Selection Sunday. That said, erasing an 8-point deficit in the final 12 minutes of any ACC game merits props.

This Tech did by shooting 56 percent after intermission and limiting Wake to three second-half offensive rebounds. The Hokies shot 37.1 percent in the opening half, when they allowed the Deacons 15 offensive boards.

"It was definitely addressed," Johnson said of the weak first-half rebounding, "in a nice tone of voice."

As he has all season, Green carried Tech offensively, scoring 18 of his game-high 22 points in the second half. The nation's leading scorer at 24.6 points per game, Green made 7-of-10 shots after halftime.

"He's seeing different schemes every single game," Johnson said. "It's taken him awhile to try and figure it out and adjust to how they're playing him, and tonight it took him a little longer than normal. … He's like a quarterback seeing different blitzes coming from different places."

The Deacons' blitzes came on screens, when they'd trap Green. He was much better in the second half at passing quickly out of the doubles, and the crisp ball movement created open shots for others.

"Erick is our guy, there's no doubt about it," Johnson said. "But we've got some other guys that can make plays. We need them to make plays more consistently. …

"When they take Erick Green away in certain situations, these guys still have confidence to be able to make plays. And even though Robert and Marquis (Rankin) and those guys hadn't done a whole lot on the offensive end, they still know I've got confidence in them to make the play when the play's available for them."

Brown appreciates the endorsement. He averaged 14.4 points and shot 45.2 percent in the Hokies' first eight games, and a return to that form would improve Tech immeasurably.

But respiratory ailments that sidelined Brown for a home loss to Boston College, not to mention the shooting slump, linger. Brown's thinking?

"They've got to start falling sooner or later."

David Teel can be reached at 757-247-4636 or by email at dteel@dailypress.com. For more from Teel, read his blog at dailypress.com/ teeltime and follow him at twitter.com/DavidTeelatDP